Together We Escape the Fire
by ChickWithThePurpleGuitar
Summary: A/H. The embarrassing thing wasn't that Percy barely hesitated in letting Nico back into his life, or that he nearly destroyed a five-year relationship for one he knew he couldn't trust, or not even that death and jail and the strong words of his best friends still couldn't stop him. The embarrassing thing was that once he fell in love, he never regretted it once. Percico.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey, guys. For those of you who don't know me, I'm ChickWithThePurpleGuitar, CPG for short. I haven't started a new fic in a while because I'm working on at least 28 of them at the same time (and those are only the ones I've posted), including my fairly popular drabble/oneshot collection: Oh, Nico. But then I got a laptop for Christmas. And then I found out that my writing style is completely different (and a lot more serious) when I write straight to computer, which I very seldom do (because all my great comedy, i.e. 46 out of 47 chapters of Oh, Nico, came from the notebooks). And then I was writing Oh, Nico and Percy started to describe the way Nico talked, and it started sounding really shippy…**

**Anyway. Point, I ship Percico now, and I didn't want to, but I do. So I started writing this, and it went about three different directions before I settled on what I got for the first chapter. I hope you guys like it. Please review!**

**This chapter is dedicated to ****the seashore****, who reviewed my one-sided Percico chapter of Oh, Nico and told me that I was an idiot for thinking Percico was only a crack ship, because I now realize it's totally a thing. So, seashore, this is for you. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJO.**

**Please review and tell me what you think!**

* * *

Chapter One

The embarrassing part wasn't that Percy was wearing nothing but a towel, or that he'd been standing there so long that he was dripping water onto the floor into a semi-large puddle, or even that Nico had come into his bedroom through the window (and he had to have come through the window, because Percy decided to trust that his mom wouldn't have let him in). The embarrassing part was that Percy wasn't embarrassed. And even worse, he wasn't mad.

He should've been, by all rights. He hadn't spoken to Nico di Angelo in three days, ever since Percy had caught him in the high school gym, kissing Percy's girlfriend against the wall. He hadn't talked to Annabeth either, considering the encounter hadn't exactly seemed one-sided, or against her will; but not much talking had really been necessary- after all, Percy had never been good at staying mad at people, and Annabeth was a really good kisser.

Still, Nico should've been easy to be mad at. Percy had known him for four and a half years, and the younger guy still managed to surprise him every single day. Whether it was appearing out of nowhere- making Percy jump five feet in the air- just to tell him that he looked nervous, or making out with his girlfriend six hours after telling Percy that he just might actually be gay, Nico would always succeed in surprising Percy in the most irritating of ways.

But there were, of course, things Percy did know about the kid. Things that turned all anger into pity, or at least guilt. He knew Nico's sister had died because of a cheap prank in a junkyard, composed by some of Percy's best friends. He knew Nico's parents were mostly absent, possibly abusive, and had way more money than they bothered to spend on their son. He knew Nico was mostly a good kid who'd just caught a lot of unlucky breaks in his life, and yet he'd kissed Percy's girlfriend. Percy would never truly be able to get over that fact, much less understand it.

Percy finally crossed the room to his dresser, trying his best to pretend Nico wasn't there. It wasn't too hard, considering Nico could've passed for a ninja with little effort. Percy grabbed some clothes from his drawer and retreated into the bathroom again, giving both Nico and himself some time to think.

As he got dressed, pulling on his boxers and then his jeans, Percy thought back just a few minutes. He'd come out of the shower singing Wrecking Ball at the top of his lungs, and broke off when he saw Nico leaning against his open window. He'd been wearing jeans and his aviator jacket, like he did almost every day, but the rest of his appearance had been slightly less than normal.

The first thing Percy noticed about his ex-friend was of course the thing that activated the pity. Nico had been slouching, as per usual, but he had his right arm hugged tightly to his chest, like he was afraid of moving it. The scar that ran diagonally down the left side of his face, missing his eye by an inch, had been reopened, and blood was running down his cheek. His right eye was black, and Nico winced with each blink. His colorless eyes glistened with unshed tears, but Percy could tell he hadn't cried. Not yet, anyway.

Nico hadn't said anything, just stared at Percy, shifting uncomfortably, mouth twisted in a nervous half-frown that Percy had never seen directed to anyone but Nico's parents.

Percy slid a blue t-shirt over his head and looked at his own reflection in the bathroom mirror. Nico had been scared of him, he realized now. It made sense- Percy would be scared of just about everyone if he'd just been beat up by his parents- and honestly Nico deserved it after everything he'd done, but Percy had the sudden urge to go back into his room and make Nico not scared, no matter what it took.

Pushing the thought aside, for now anyway, Percy tossed his towel over the shower rod and picked up an old sock from behind the door as he went back into his room, using it to wipe up the puddle of water his hair had left. Then he threw it back into the bathroom and leaned against the door, finally looking up at his friend.

"What are you doing here?"

Nico held his gaze for about a second and a half before looking down at the floor. His face was pale, Percy noticed, more so than usual. He wondered how badly hurt Nico really was.

"I'll go," Nico offered, already turning back to the window.

Percy rolled his eyes. "Unless you're going to the hospital, don't," he ordered. Nico slowly turned back around, the nervous frown intensifying. "What are you doing here?"

"Can I stay here tonight?" The way he said it was too nonchalant for Percy to take with the way Nico was looking at him. Percy closed his eyes and tried to picture Nico the way that matched his voice- already on Percy's bed, holding one of Percy's swimsuit magazines like he could actually read it, talking with his tongue stuck into his top teeth so it sounded like he had a lollipop in his mouth.

"Shouldn't you be at home?" Percy asked, opening his eyes again. Nico shrunk back against the wall, the opposite of his usual, casual self. Percy flinched at the sight of it.

"Parents are out of town," Nico told him, and Percy couldn't tell if he was lying or not- they could've just left.

"They know you're here?"

Nico shrugged, and Percy took that as a no. He opened his mouth to say something else, something either calm and fake, or biting and hurtfully true, but there was a trickle of blood starting to run down Nico's neck, and it was very distracting.

"I'll ask," Percy said, starting towards the door. Just about to leave, he jerked his head towards the bathroom. "Clean yourself up."

He didn't stay long enough to see Nico obey.

* * *

Percy's mom was setting the table for dinner when he came into the kitchen, three pizza boxes stacked on the counter. She looked up as Percy entered and smiled at him. "Great, you're clean. Your father will be home any minute."

Percy didn't make a snarky comment about why teenage guys didn't like showering, or even question the fact that his mom had called Paul "your father". Instead, he took the plates from her and set them out, then grabbed another one from the cabinet and set a fourth place.

His mom frowned. "Expecting someone?"

Percy hesitated to explain. Mom knew about what had happened with Nico and Annabeth- or at least she knew that Nico was the cause of the dent in Percy's wall and that when Annabeth came over, she had to stay out of his room with the TV's volume up- so he wasn't sure how she'd take Nico showing up with a black eye and suggesting a sleepover.

"Nico's here. I think he came up the fire escape," Percy began, watching his mom to gauge her reaction. She'd resumed setting the table and only slowed for a second before setting a fourth place. "He's hurt," Percy continued, "and I said he could stay the night."

His mom looked up at him with that mom look that said "I respect your choices but I think they're stupid."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, honey?"

Percy sighed. "I don't know. He's got no one else, and… at least now we can talk about what happened. Or, you know, attempt to…"

Mom gave a small smile, along with her "whatever you say dear, but you're gonna regret this in the morning" look that Percy had only seen accompany Annabeth staying over. "Nico's welcome to stay, then. As long as he needs."

"Thanks, Mom," Percy said, kissing her on the cheek as he walked past her to the cabinet where they kept the First Aid kit. "Let me know when Paul's here, and we'll come out for dinner."

She nodded, and Percy went back to his room, only to see that Nico wasn't there, and the window was closed.

* * *

Percy tossed the First Aid kit onto his bed with a sigh and crossed the room to his window. He opened the window and leaned his head out, looking down at the street below. Nico was nowhere in sight, meaning he must've left right away. Percy rested his forearms on the window sill and hung his head. Why did he even try with that kid? It wasn't like Percy gained anything from it. All Nico managed to do by… well, by being Nico was to make Percy dent his wall, spend a good thirty seconds leaning out his bedroom window, and give him a headache he really didn't have the energy for. With a deep sigh, Percy rubbed his face and started to lean back into his room.

"I thought you'd want it closed."

Percy jumped in surprise, yelping as he hit his head on the window, trying to spin around at the same time. Nico was standing in the bathroom doorway, looking at Percy like he was crazy. He'd washed the blood off his face, but the skin under his eye was still dark purple and he'd made a towel into a makeshift sling for his arm.

Percy stared at him, still half outside, one hand on his head. "You're still here."

Nico frowned at him in confusion, that hint of fear just barely showing through. "Yeah…I came here. Why would I leave?"

Percy shrugged. "Because you're you?" he suggested as he ducked back into his room and shut the window.

Nico opened his mouth to protest, then evidently thought better of it. "You're… probably right…"

Percy scowled at his ex-bro. "You know, just because I'm mad at you doesn't mean you have to agree to everything I say."

"Don't I?" Nico replied casually, just barely making it a question in that infuriating Nico way of his.

Percy sighed. "Whatever. Just… don't even talk, okay? That'll make it easier for both of us." Nico nodded slowly in nervous agreement. "Now, sit." Percy gestured towards the First Aid kit on the bed.

Nico's eyes widened. "Oh, no, you don't have to-"

"What did we say about talking?" Percy interrupted forcefully. Nico shut up and sat down hesitantly on the bed.

"Good. Now, you gonna tell me what happened?" Percy asked as he opened up the kit and pulled some bandages out.

"I thought you didn't want me to talk," Nico mumbled. Percy glared at him, and Nico's cheeks reddened. "Sorry, I… Nothing happened. I just… got in an accident, that's all."

Percy didn't believe that one bit, but decided not to question. If there was one thing Nico was self-conscious about, it was his own well-being. He ripped open a Band-Aid and carefully pressed it to the top of Nico's scar, knowing he'd need at least three more to cover the whole thing. He made sure to move slowly, not wanting Nico to pull away if Percy came at his face too quickly.

As he unwrapped another Band-Aid, Percy tried to figure out himself what had happened, based on the little he knew of Nico's family.

* * *

Every day after school, Nico tried his best to avoid going home. Usually, he had cheerleading practice (Percy had tried to offer to get Nico on the swim team multiple times, but the younger boy seemed to like cheerleading- Percy had always assumed it was because of the girls in skirts, but apparently not), but often he ended up just hanging out at Percy's house until it was physically impossible to stay any longer without Percy's mom asking questions.

Percy was one of the only people who knew Nico's situation, and he didn't exactly know it for good reasons. He'd first met Nico back before his sister died, before Nico was… Nico. He used to be an annoying little kid that Percy had the urge to punch just about every five seconds. After Bianca… well, that changed pretty much overnight.

Back then, Percy hadn't known Nico's parents were even in the picture. Bianca seemed to be completely in charge of Nico, and the one time she'd trusted Percy enough to drive them home, the destination had been a half-abandoned building behind a church. Percy hadn't asked questions, since it was more than obvious the di Angelos wouldn't answer them, but that had been the first of many nights the siblings spent at Percy's house.

After Bianca died, Nico started showing up to school with cuts and bruises, and Percy finally got up the courage to ask about his parents. It wasn't until three weeks later, in the hospital, that Nico granted him with an answer.

Over the years, Percy learned that Nico didn't get hit because he'd done something wrong, or because his parents were drunk (though they usually were), or even because of some stupid psychological reason that explained all child abuse. Usually, when Nico was upset, he'd lash out, start the fight, and very quickly lose it. Badly. More than likely, Nico had been mad about possibly (probably) losing Percy as a friend forever and had gotten on his parents' bad sides, once again.

Meaning that it was Percy's fault he'd gotten hurt… He tried not to feel guilty… It didn't work.

Leave it to Nico to turn anger into guilt in under two minutes. It was really one of his best traits.

* * *

Percy was pulled out of his thoughts by Nico's gasp, barely audible, as Percy touched the bruise under his eye. His hand froze, inches from Nico's face, as the younger boy avoided his gaze and tried to act like nothing had happened.

"You alright?" Percy asked, waiting for the lie, searching for the fear in Nico's black eyes.

Nico hesitated, but eventually told him the truth. "It hurts. If you could… I mean, you know… not touch that part, that'd be… great."  
Percy nodded and slowly lowered his hand into his lap. "That's all I can do for your face then." The Band-Aids spread out down his scar looked ridiculous, and his black eye made him look like he'd been punched by a bear, or at least a raccoon, but Nico had visibly relaxed, and Percy had the feeling he was gonna be a lot easier to deal with now. "You want to tell me what's up with your arm?"

Nico held his arm close to him again, even though the makeshift sling supported it just fine. "I don't think it's broken," he told Percy. "I mean, it doesn't… hurt that much." Percy noted the pause. "It just kinda aches. I think I'll be okay."

"Can you move it?" Percy asked, just to be sure. Nico hesitantly untied the sling and stretched out his arm. He only winced a little bit. "Then I think you're okay too."

Nico nodded. Percy nodded back. They'd been silent before, but now it was just awkward.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. "Your father's home," Percy's mom called from the hallway. "Come on out for dinner."

"Coming," Percy called back. Nico had already stood and was making his way to the door. Percy suddenly found himself wanting the kid on the bed next to him again.

Nico had had dinner with Percy and his family millions of times. But this dinner, this time, suddenly felt like Percy was bringing a girlfriend home.

Saying that was a bad thing was such an understatement it was sad.

No. It was scary.

* * *

**A/N: So there's that. I don't know if it worked as well as I think it did. I've never **_**actually **_**written slash before… Anyway, hope you liked it. Please review and tell me how I did, and I'll try to update soon!**

**By the way, everyone who reviews gets to see the original ending of this chapter, which is completely different than the actual one.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey, guys. Sorry this update took so long. I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter, and I'm still not really happy with it. It's mostly a filler chapter, and Annabeth's character... I don't even know, but hopefully you guys won't hate this.**

**So, anyway, enjoy the chapter and please review!**

Chapter Two

**Me:** _Nico came to my house. Is that weird?_

**Annabeth:** _A little._

**Annabeth:** _You all right?_

**Me:** _Really?_ You're _asking me that?_

**Annabeth:** _Shut up. I apologized._

**Me:**_ And I technically never forgave you._

**Me:** _Didn't mean that. You know what I meant._

**Annabeth:** _Why is Nico at your house?_

**Me:** _How should I know?_

**Annabeth:**_ I mean, did he come to talk to you?_

**Annabeth:**_ Is he hurt?_

**Me:** _Are you concerned?_

**Annabeth:** _I'm his friend too, you know._

**Me:** _Friend? You sure about that?_

**Annabeth:** _Are you still mad at me? Is that what you're trying to say?_

**Me:** _g2g. See ya tomorrow._

**Annabeth:**_ Percy?_

* * *

Percy closed his laptop just as Nico came back into his room, looking even more terrified than he had before.

"My mom talk to you?" Percy guessed.

Nico nodded, then closed the door behind him and leaned against it. "Your mom scares me."

Percy chuckled, then felt bad for doing so. He was still mad. He was supposed to be still mad.

"Can we talk?" Nico asked softly, rubbing his bad arm gently. "I mean… am I allowed to talk to you now?"\

Percy flinched. Dinner had been really, _really_ awkward, with Mom glaring at Nico and dropping hints as to what a horrible person he was, while Percy repeatedly reminded him that he'd agreed not to talk and if he said one word, he was going home (and he didn't feel bad about that either… seriously), not to mention Paul obviously having no idea what was going on.

"How's school going for you, Nico?" Percy's step-father had asked once the awkward silence had become too much for him.

Nico had glanced nervously at Percy, who'd gestured for him to answer the question.

"Um… not too bad," Nico replied awkwardly (he didn't really know Paul that well and also just wasn't comfortable around adults in general). "I'm having some trouble in English, but Annabeth's been helping me."

"Oh, is _that_ what you were doing on Friday?" Percy's mom had then snapped. "_Studying?_"

Percy almost felt bad for letting his mom attack Nico like that. But then he remembered the kid deserved it. For some reason it kept getting harder and harder to remember that.

"You can talk," he told the boy. "Do you have something to say?"

For a minute or two, Nico just stared at him, and Percy found himself captivated by the blackness of Nico's eyes. Annabeth had told him once that the eyes were a window to the soul- if that was true, then Nico didn't have one.

Nico's breathing turned shallow, like it often did when he was nervous, and Percy forced himself to break eye contact. The younger boy cleared his throat awkwardly and took a deep, but ragged, breath.

"Thank you," he said softly, his gaze pointed at a spot on the wall about three feet from Percy's face. "For helping me. Especially now, with everything that happened, and how… _awful_ I've been to you, but also just in general, with my sister and everything… Anyway, just… thanks."

Percy was confused. It wasn't his birthday, it wasn't the middle of Lent (Nico could be _really_ Catholic when he wanted to be), and it took him a minute to think about it, but it definitely wasn't February 3rd, so why was Nico being so nice?

Could he really feel that bad about what he'd done?

"You're my friend, Nico," he said. "I'll always help you."

Nico met Percy's gaze, his breath quickening. "Percy, I… I'll be back later. Thank you for letting me stay, but… I mean…" Percy frowned, having no idea what Nico was trying to say. "I have to go."

Nico fumbled with the doorknob behind him and didn't look away from Percy's eyes until the door was closed and he was gone.

Percy stared after him, not quite sure what had just happened, and almost wishing Nico were still there.

But then he looked away from the door and forced himself not to think about it.

Nico di Angelo was not someone he was supposed to miss.

* * *

After Percy's phone rang for the fifth time, he finally picked up.

"Sorry, my phone was off," he lied.

He could practically hear Annabeth glaring at him. "Liar," she accused. "Is Nico still at your house?"

Anger and jealousy bubbled inside him, but Percy tried to keep his voice steady when he responded. "He just left, but he should be back soon."

"Is he okay?"

Percy sighed. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Percy… Are you still mad at me? Honestly?"

Percy was very tempted to hang up. He didn't want to deal with this. He didn't want to talk to Annabeth, about Nico or about anything. He just wanted… He wanted for none of this to have ever happened.

"Yes," he said simply. "Did you expect me not to be?"

It turned out Annabeth was the one to hang up.

Percy tossed his phone onto the bed and sighed, rubbing his face in exasperation.

What was he going to do?

* * *

"Nico, you seriously need to stop coming here. Percy's gonna find out."

Nico glared at Annabeth from where he stood, leaning against her bedroom wall. "It's not like I'm here to make out with you. I just have to talk to you."

Annabeth shut the door behind her and turned off the light- Nico visibly relaxed as the shadows swallowed him. She walked past him to the window and drew the blinds so they were in complete darkness, then leaned against the wall and closed her eyes. "What do you want?"

"Did Percy tell you-" Nico began.

"That you showed up at his house for a sleepover?" Annabeth snapped. "Yeah. He told me."

She couldn't see him, but she could hear Nico's breath, quiet and shallow. "Would you have preferred I come here?"

Annabeth sighed. "No. My dad hates you."

"Well, there you go."

For a few moments there was silence. Then Annabeth whispered, "Are you hurt?"

"No," Nico replied, just as softly. "Not anymore."

"Did they hurt you?"

Nico hesitated before responding. "It's not their fault, I started it."

"That's not what I asked."

Nico chuckled darkly, and Annabeth had the feeling he wasn't going to answer.

But then, "Yeah. But it doesn't matter, Percy fixed me up."

"Are you gonna go back to his place?" Annabeth asked.

"I can't stay here," Nico pointed out. "I have no other choice, my parents left for Italy this morning."

Annabeth almost offered to keep him at her house, but she knew that would only complicate things further between her and Percy.

"I'll still see you tomorrow?" she asked instead. "Same time?"

"I think so," Nico said. "I'll call you tonight."

Annabeth opened her eyes, hoping to see Nico leave, but by the time her vision adjusted, he was gone.

**A/N: So there's that. Again, I don't love this chapter, but hopefully you guys didn't hate it. Please let me know what you think in a review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Guys, I think I have a problem.**

**You see, I'm currently writing (attempting to write) the 50th chapter of my fic, _Oh, Nico_, and I want it to be really special since it's, you know, the 50th. But that means it has, like, _plot_, for once, and I'm using like over 100 OCs my reviewers sent me and basically it's gonna be really long and awesome. But it's also really_ hard_, so I've been stalling by, like… writing _other things._ This chapter's kind of short, but you know, it _exists_ and it hasn't been a year since my last update, so that's, like, not normal. I've also been writing a lot of oneshots. I recently posted two, _Funeral of Death_ and _Unicorn Blood_, and I'm currently writing three more, titled_ Freaks and Geeks_, _Relationship Decisions_, and _Snowflake_ (all working titles), as well as a new multi-chap where A/H Percy, Nico, and Thalia are all foster kids living in a home together. I SHOULD NOT BE WRITING THAT MANY FICS. I SHOULD BE WORKING ON FICS THAT ALREADY EXIST.**

**Sigh. Okay now I'm done ranting. You guys can read the chapter now. Enjoy and please review!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

Chapter Three

_"I think I'm in love with Percy."_

_Annabeth looked up from her architecture textbook to see Nico di Angelo standing in the doorway of her bedroom. It took her a minute to process what the younger boy had said, but once she did, all she could do was sigh. "Oh my god, are you serious?"_

_Nico nodded, biting his lip nervously, his breath shallow. "I think so… What do I do?"_

_Annabeth shook her head at him, looking disappointed but not mad, which confused Nico greatly. She marked the page in her textbook and closed it, leaning back in her desk chair. "Why are you asking me?"_

_"You're his girlfriend," Nico replied. "Aren't you supposed to tell me to back off so I can move on with my life?"_

_Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "Would you… like me to?"_

_"I don't know!" Nico exclaimed. "I'm kind of freaking out about this, Annabeth! How are you being so calm?"_

_Annabeth sighed and looked away from him, feeling guilty for having to talk about this to Nico before she even mentioned it to Percy. "It's… complicated," she told him. "Percy and I… our relationship hasn't really been working…"_

_Nico frowned, suddenly calm. "You mean… you're breaking up?"_

_"Not yet," Annabeth assured him. "Not for awhile. Just… I don't even know. I care about him, don't get me wrong. Just… Not like that. Not anymore."_

_Nico stared at her, his problem suddenly seeming inconsequential compared to this. "Should I be sorry?"_

_Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Of course not, I'm not upset about it. In fact, I'm just trying to find the nicest way to dump him before Homecoming. You see, there's this really cute guy in my Architecture class-"_

_"You mean Luke?" Nico interrupted, raising an eyebrow._

_Annabeth narrowed her eyes at him. "Yeah… How'd you know?"_

_Nico smirked. "Annabeth, I've been watching you and Percy for four years. I notice things."_

_Annabeth sighed. "Whatever. Point is, I'm not mad that you like Percy, because I really do care about him, and maybe this way he won't have to be alone after we break up."_

_Nico frowned. "Wait, but, how do you know he likes me back? I thought he only liked girls."_

_Annabeth laughed. "Oh, trust me, Nico. If you knew Percy as long as I have- he likes both."_

_"Huh," Nico muttered. "Okay… Well, what do I do then? If you dump him, and I ask him out, how do you know he'll say yes?"_

_Annabeth frowned thoughtfully for a moment, then suddenly grinned. "You know what? I think I have the perfect idea."_

* * *

It was almost nine o'clock when Nico came back, bribing the doorman into not alerting the Jacksons of his arrival and using the extra key he knew was under the doormat to enter the apartment.

Percy was back on his laptop when Nico came into the bedroom, pretending to be doing homework but actually staring forlornly at an old photo of him and Annabeth from their junior prom. He didn't notice Nico standing there at first, but eventually happened to glance up and immediately jumped up in surprise, shutting his laptop with a click. He stared for a minute, then slowly asked, "How long have you been standing there?"

"I just got here," Nico promised, looking nervous.

Percy nodded. "Good. Where were you?"

Nico closed the door behind him and leaned against it. "Nowhere," he replied rather vaguely. "I just needed some air."

"You were gone for almost an hour," Percy pointed out. Nico just shrugged.

Percy looked down at himself, trying to compose his thoughts. After a minute or so, he spoke. "I don't want to talk about… what happened. If we talk about it now, we'll fight, and… I just don't want to go into that right now." Nico didn't protest, so he continued. "I'll drive you to school tomorrow, and… if you wanna talk on the way there, great. If you don't… I think we should just forget about all this and move on."

Nico took a step back, hitting the door. "Move on?" he repeated. "You mean… you could just forget this ever happened?"

Percy didn't meet his eyes. "No. I meant… move on, as in… stop being friends…"

Nico's eyes widened fractionally and Percy worried he would disappear again. But then the younger boy nodded. "You're right. Okay."

"My mom put a blanket on the couch for you," Percy told him. "I'll see you in the morning?"

Nico nodded, watched him for just another moment, then left the room.

Percy sighed and opened his laptop up again. He closed the photo he'd been looking at and activated his IM chats.

**Me: There. I did what you told me to.**

**Annabeth: Think he'll talk to you tomorrow?**

**Me: Knowing Nico? We won't be seeing much of him anymore.**

**Annabeth: Good.**

**Annabeth: I mean… good that you at least know what's going to happen, right?**

**Annabeth: I know you hate surprises.**

**Me: Yeah…**

* * *

_"Rule Number One: Percy loves surprises."_

_Nico froze in the doorway to the school gym and stared in shock at Annabeth Chase, who was standing in the middle of the room, pointing at a roll-in chalkboard with a long stick. He raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"_

_ "You wanted to do this," Annabeth reminded him, smirking. "I'm giving you Percy lessons."_

_Nico blinked. "_That's_ your perfect idea? 'Percy Lessons'?"_

_Annabeth scowled. "Yes, yes it is. Look, Percy's not exactly a very complicated person. If I can get you to understand him just as well as I do, he'll have no choice but to date you."_

_Nico nodded slowly. "That's… definitely not how it works."_

_ "It is when it comes to Percy," Annabeth insisted. "Now are you ready to learn?"_

_After another moment of hesitation, Nico sighed. "Yeah, I guess so." He dropped his bag by the door and shut it behind him, then joined Annabeth on the basketball court. "What are we gonna tell Percy?"_

_Annabeth frowned. "What do you mean?"_

_ "Well, isn't he gonna notice us both disappearing into the gym every day?" Nico pointed out. "He's already suspicious that I didn't need a ride home today."_

_ She shrugged. "I'll just say I have architecture club or something. What'd you tell him?"_

_"Cheerleading tryouts," the boy replied._

_Annabeth smirked. "Nice. He hates cheerleaders."_

_"Exactly," Nico agreed. "If I 'make the squad' he'll never get anywhere near our 'practices' and therefore never find out you're planning on dumping him."_

_Annabeth started to glare, but then decided against it and turned away. "Let's just get to the lesson."_

_Nico nodded and leaned against the gym wall. "Right. Percy loves surprises. Go on."_

_ "Gladly."_

* * *

Percy had an unnaturally comfortable couch in Nico's opinion, but that might've been because his bed at home had the comfortability of a hardcover 1500 page book.

He lay there for a few minutes, staring at the ceiling, the blanket Mrs. Jackson had left for him lying forgotten at his feet. Nico had never been good at falling asleep in strange places, even strange places that were twelve thousand times more inviting than his own home. He had a tendency to have nightmares when he wasn't at home, often having to do with the night his sister died. Without thinking about it, Nico reached for the cord around his neck and pulled the necklace out from under his shirt- a crucifix from his mother and a dark statuette from his sister on the same chain. The last things he had from the only people who cared about him.

Well, except for Percy...

He hoped Annabeth's plan worked. He didn't want to lose Percy too.

With a sigh, Nico rolled over onto his side so that he faced the back of the couch, and closed his eyes, begging for the universe to let him sleep.

Less than two hours later, he awoke with a gasp, cold sweat running down his face, the image of his sister's body, broken and bloody, implanted in his mind.

Nico considered himself a rather tough and composed human being, but that night he cried, for his mother, for his sister, and for the boy who was once his best friend.

* * *

**A/N: SPOILER ALERT IN THE NEXT CHAPTER PERCY AND NICO CUDDLE. You're welcome. I'll write that… eventually. Anyway, hope you liked this, go read my new oneshots, and look out for the other three that will be up soon…...ish. And review!**


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